


Sadly Mistaken

by santatape



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Abuse, Angst, Cliffhanger, FTM, Gay, Internalized Homophobia, Karen is super sweet in this, M/M, Sad bois, The byers family is very emotional, bad words, trans!Mike
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-20
Updated: 2019-06-22
Packaged: 2020-05-15 08:38:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 1,819
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19292167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/santatape/pseuds/santatape
Summary: In which Will Byers has caught feelings for Mike Wheeler, and everything turns to shit.I’m bad at writing summaries but there’s brotherly love from Jonathan and Karen is super nice.THIS STORY IS POTENTIALLY TRIGGERING.THERE IS ABUSE, LGBTQ+ ELEMENTS, HATRED, AND BAD LANGUAGE. PLEASE READ WITH CAUTION.





	1. Chapter 1

The year was 1985, and Will Byers was sick.

 

Sick of it all.

 

He was taken to another dimension where he had to hide in fear hoping to whatever is holy that he would survive, possessed by an evil  _thing_ that almost made his friends give up on him, but now this. 

 

This topped everything.

 

Will Byers was gay. 

 

And he had a crush on the one, the only, 

Mike  _fucking_ Wheeler.

 

But nobody could know. If they knew? Imagine the things that would go down. Jonathan would obviously hate him, so Will would lose his best friend. And Hopper would kick him out, or leave just like Lonnie, like Bob, but Joyce would agree with it because Hopper is her true love. He’s so much better than Will, some kid she didn’t even want. All his friends would turn on him, out him to the world. Troy and his friends would go crazy on him, finally having an excuse for bullying him. The teachers wouldn’t care, they’d think Will deserved the bullying, the beating and kicking and broken ribs and black eyes and crushed dreams. 

 

So, as Will Byers sat on his bed, listening to his new mixtape Jonathan made him, hating his 15 year old body and mind, letting his anxiety and fear get the better of him and wishing he could be normal for once, he felt the first drop of salt burning into his right cheek as it fell. 

 

And now he was crying.  _Ugh. Stupid emotions,_ he thought, smudging the wetness on his face away, wanting these feelings to stop. Ugly coughs escaped his throat as the light streams turned to heavy waterfalls, beautiful yet broken. Hiccuping, sobbing, and curling in on himself, the door opened although Will couldn’t hear it over The Clash pounding in his ears, and his thoughts taking control, but in walked none other than Jonathan Byers. 

 

“Will?”

 

No. This wasn’t happening. Now Jonathan would know, he probably already knew but wanted to hear Will say it, that way he could spit in his younger brother’s face and walk away, never to speak to him again. That way he could have living proof as to why he hates his annoying kid brother. That way he could out him, tell all his friends about him, wish him the ugliest and most difficult life ever, wishing him the worst, hoping the door might hit him on the way out. 

 

So no, Will couldn’t tell Jonathan. 

 

Not now, not ever. 

 

But, as the graduate sat on Will Byers’  _Star Wars_ bedsheets, next to his sobbing form, and placed a gentle, caring hand onto his shaking back, Will knew his life just might be okay. 

 

Not might, would be okay. 

 

Because Will Byers knew that if he could get through this? 

 

Well then he could get through anything. 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Jonathan was tired of feeling depressed. 

He hated the emotional pain, the tug on his heartstrings every time he so much as moved. 

He didn’t want to feel this way, didn’t want to cry himself to sleep every night, didn’t want to hate himself for all that he’s worth (which wasn’t a lot in his eyes, mind you), and way way more. 

But when the boy heard his 15 year old brother crying in the room next door, his heartstrings didn’t tug.

They ripped.

So he quietly, oh so quietly, tiptoed into the hallway, opening the door and hearing the quiet creak it made. 

Fuck the heartstrings, his entire heart broke at the sight met with his eyes as he walked into that room. 

His long legs led him to the bed, sat himself down next to the shaking boy, and Jonathan observed him before placing a single hand, littered with cuts and scratches and scabs and bruises and dead skin and calluses on the boy’s back. The boy looked five years younger curled in on himself like this, sobbing his eyes out and reminding Jonathan creepily of himself at this age. 

Why would he be so sad? What was wrong? 

The older boy whisperer a quiet “Shhh,” into his brother’s small ear before quickly comforting, “I’m here, don’t worry.” 

He hugged his shaking brother from the side, one arm holding his neck and pushing it gently into the crook of his own, the other wrapped around his vibrating torso. Fairly soon, sobs turned into hiccups, hiccups turned into whines, and whines turned into breaths. 

Will lifted his head up and stared at his brother, why would he be comforting him when he was like this? Not crying, but, ugh. Will could barely think of the word without gagging. 

Gay.

Gay, as in liking boys, dick, body hair, stubble, big feet, tall men, abs, all of it. It wasn’t normal. Not in the least. 

So why did Jonathan still seem to love him? 

Oh wait. Jonathan didn’t know he was gay yet, that’s why. 

Wait, yet? No. No no no. Not yet, never.

Will locked his mouth shut, unwilling to let any secrets fly out. 

But the look Jonathan gave when the younger boy lifted his head, that look made him want to start sobbing all over again. 

Pure confusion, but a loving confusion. And this confusion forced Will to unlock his rosy lips, and open his mouth, and prepare to speak. He let one last tear fall and didn’t wipe it away, he liked it there. 

He untangled himself from the brotherly hug and stared at the teen sitting tall in his 5’8” glory compared to the 5’4” boy. 

And he let himself speak the words, the secret words nobody could ever know.

“I’m gay, Jonathan.”

And Jonathan looked at him for a couple seconds before replying, 

“Me too.”

The boys pulled each other back into a hug, crushing each other’s lungs, restricting airways, but it didn’t matter. 

They were gonna be okay.

The two brothers were gonna be okay.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just so you amazing readers know, this story is actually my own work from Wattpad in 2018. I’ve decided to put it here on ao3 because I love the platform so much, but the chapters on here have been split up into shorter ones because I don’t have enough time in my breaks for writing out each chapter again. So each chapter here is close to half of the original chapter that it’s coming from.

Wait what? Jonathan was gay? Will just now realized exactly what his brother had told him. Will had been low-key tuning him out in honor of his own pity party and invasive thoughts before he felt Jon hugging him and making him feel like maybe the world wasn’t complete shit. But he was gay? Woah. Things just got 10000000 times better.

 

That’s when it all came crashing back down to reality.

 

Abso-fucking-lutely none of his problems were solved. Except telling Jon, that was one problem solved he guessed. But what about Mom? And the Party? And more specifically, Mike? The boy who stuck by him through thick and thin, who slept on the fucking floor just to keep Will company in case he had a nightmare. Who held his hand, who laid his head on his chest, who cried over him.

 

The best fucking friend Will ever had. And now Will had to go and fuck it all up by being gay for him, falling for the straight guy. What was his problem? Why did he have to go and catch feelings for the one person he knew would never like him back? Well, maybe not Lucas either. That boy was a stereotypical straight male, that was for damn sure.

 

Oh who was he kidding.

 

No one would ever like him back.

 

_Oh schnitzel. Jonathan’s still hugging me. What do I do? This is starting to get awkward..._

 

Will began to gently wiggle out of his brother’s grasp, trying to communicate that he didn’t want to be hugged anymore. Jonathan, luckily, got the memo and unraveled himself from the younger teen, both of them still emotional wrecks.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow. i didn’t realize that this story would get so popular in just a couple days! i’m really glad you readers have enjoyed the story so far, but don’t worry, there is still much to happen!

"Thank you, Jon. I really needed that."

 

Then, a pause. "But, you're gay too? Aren't you dating Nancy?" Jonathan sighed. "Yes, I'm gay. I've been dating Nancy as a way to distract myself from who I really love. I'm sorry I'm such a bad role model, Will. You're so much stronger than I'll ever be."

 

Will was confused now. Who he really loved? Who is it? Did Will know him?

 

"Well, who is it?"

 

"Who?"

 

"The person you really love." Jonathan sighed again.

 

"If I tell you this, you cannot tell anyone. Understand? Actually, don't even tell anyone I'm gay. Yeah."

 

"I won't, I promise." Will stated quietly. 

 

"It's,"

 

"Yeah?"

 

"Steve." He barely whispered out.

 

~~

 

Will was biking over to Mikes, they were having a one-on-one sleepover. They hadn't had one in a while, and Will knew that this was the perfect opportunity to come clean, but what would Mike think? Probably bad things. No, Will couldn't do it. Wait, yes he could. But, no. Yes, no. No. Yes, yes and no. Yes. No.

 

Will stopped biking and pounded his head against the handlebars. Sigh. He lifted his head after a couple of minutes, staring out at what seemed like nothing. However, as Will Byers looked around, he realized where he was.

 

"Ugh!" He shouted into the still air of Mike fucking Wheeler's driveway, slamming his head down yet again. Then, of course, Mike came running down the front steps, seeing Will upset led him to believe something was wrong, bless his heart, which it kind of was.

 

"Will! Are you okay?" He yelled as he continued running.

 

"Fine." Will smiled what had to be the world's fakest smile of the generation.

 

Mike saw right through it, as he always did.

 

"Will?"

 

Will's eyes grew, now Mike would know. Mike couldn't know, he couldn't. The tears began to fall, and Will could do nothing to stop it. He hated being weak, showing his scars like this, but he had absolutely no idea how to stand up for himself without acting like a chihuahua yipping at a Great Dane. So he sat there, on his bike, in the Wheeler's driveway, backpack hanging off one shoulder, crying.

 

And in front of the love of his fucking life.

 

Mike ran over, and upon realizing that Will was crying, he reached out his pasty, lanky arms and cradled Will's face in his beautiful hands. His long fingers reaching out to bend just behind Will's ears, his large, dark eyes searching his face for answers, the freckles dotting his nose and cheeks in the most perfectly imperfect pattern, so out of order and messy, but perfect. Dark brown specks contrasting with his ivory skin, like a reverse night sky. Will wanted to reach out, to tap each one of them, counting. To kiss each one, to whisper in his ear the three words that were the only truth in his life.

 

_I love you._

Mike’s eyes widened. 

 

_No._

 

_No._

 

_I did not just say that out loud, not in front of my best friend, my favorite person in the entire world, the only one who truly understands me._

 

_No._

 

But he did, and Will looked down again, the tears streaming down faster heavier, stronger, no longer drips but full on waterfalls rushing down his face, his beautiful button nose soaked in salty water. 


End file.
